PANAJI
Goa’s rising talents Pragya Audi, Amaira Dhumatker, and Avni Khyalia brought cheers to the home crowd on Day three of the Yonex-Sunrise All India Sub Junior (U-13) Ranking Badminton Tournament 2025, as the main draw got underway at the Manohar Parrikar Indoor Stadium in Navelim. Pragya fought back from a game down to register a thrilling 13-21, 23-21, 21-16 win over Garvita Tripathi of Uttar Pradesh in Girls Singles opening round. Meanwhile, the promising Goa duo of Amaira and Avni booked their spot in the Girls Doubles pre-quarterfinals with an impressive 21-14, 21-16 win over Evelyn Chavali and Sri Pravya Ponnaganti of Andhra Pradesh.
The day, however, also saw some setbacks for Goa’s top names. Michael Ryan Mare went down 21-12, 21-17 to Nakulan Hari N.D. of Karnataka in the Boys Singles round of 64. The Goa top pair of Vishwa Parab and Samarth Sakhalkar couldn’t advance in the Boys Doubles, losing 21-5, 21-9 to the Telangana duo of Advait Sattu and Advik Shukla. Neil Punjani Bakshi of Goa was outclassed by Karnataka’s Sanshray Sunil 21-6, 21-4. In the Girls Singles, Avni Khyalia of Goa fought hard before losing to Andhra’s Keya Kosaraju 21-17, 21-14 in the round of 64. Earlier, Michael and his partner Sai Charith Abbu of Telangana went down in the final qualification round to Swarit Kumar and Ilanjithra Dev R. by 15-12, 15-9.
Among India’s top players, Boys Singles top seed Jashwanth Mahamkali (AP) progressed with a hard-fought 21-17, 23-21 win over Anand Maderana (RAJ), while third seed Nomaan Pappu (TN) cruised past Sai Lingesh (KTK) 21-6, 21-9. In Girls Singles, top seed Asha Sree Dandu (AP) registered straight-game victories in both rounds, and seventh seed Anya Proddatur (TS) was equally dominant in her 21-6, 21-6 win over Thanisshta Srinivas Kumar (TS). In one of the major upsets of the day, the Andaman pair of Tagu Debia and Kyon Tamin upset the second seeds Adhvik Arvind and Methelan Prathima (TN) 24-22, 21-11 in Boys doubles.
